Finding wheat pennies and an IH penny, but no silver or other coins

[mountnr]

Hello,
I have a Minelab CTX3030 that I got used, and I'm a newbie. I have access to a homestead where the old house (which was recently demolished) was built in the 1860's or 1880's. I have found a handful of coins, but only pennies. No nickels, dimes, quarters, half dollars, etc. I believe the wheat pennies and IH penny were all around 3-4" deep. I really thought I'd find some old silver coins, but so far, none. I've mostly used the Old Coin Pattern as described by Andy Sabisch in the CTX 3030 handbook. I have used the 6", 11" & 17" coils. Most of what I found was with the 6" coil, because I can pinpoint the easiest with it. (I do have a pinpointer, but for whatever reason, it's not been behaving for me).

If anybody here has had a similar experience in finding only pennies where you 'know' there is other coins, I would really appreciate your advice. It's discouraging to go several times and not find what I fully expect is still there waiting.

NOTE: My main interest is old coins. I've been wondering if I should try a different metal detector, but I think the CTX 3030 is supposed to be an excellent detector, at least in experienced hands.

 

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[xr7ator]

Any machine would have found the pennies at that depth, imo. If you're on private non hunted land, I agree, there should be a dime or two amongst all those coppers. Sometimes that is just not the case. It could have been cherry picked at any time in the last 40 years.
It is my understanding that the CTX is the super deep VLF coinshooter. Keep learning the machine. I'd put the 11" back on and try to find some coins a foot deep.

 

[CoinHunterAZ]

Welcome to T-Net from Northern Arizona. My advice would be "Patience Grasshopper". Get the CTX over a silver coin, and you will know it. The 11" coil should give you more depth should the coins be a little deeper, and still pinpoint well. Keep at it and you'll get your silver. Good luck out there!

 

[jhittle]

Next time you go out turn on the GPS on the CTX and start mapping your coverage, then you will have an idea of where you have looked as well as plan your next hunt on the site. - Good luck

 

[cudamark]

You can't find what isn't there. You may "think" silver should be there, but, no way you can "know" that. Back in the 1800's, especially rural areas, kids rarely carried money around to lose. If you are able to continuously hunt the property, try a few different coils and grid patterns. There might still be a silver hiding there somewhere. I've hunted some properties many times and found silver I've missed in previous hunts. Welcome to Tnet!

 

[winken]

Hey mountnr, I would say low and slow. The handbook also talks about what frame of mind your in while detecting, if you chill and just let the ctx do its thing and don’t worry about what you should be, or could be finding you’ll be good. I know the feeling when you think there should be something there and I ain’t finding it, that’s when I say to myself it’s a hobby not a job.

 

[eyemustdigtreasure]

You are probably doing things right, you just got to walk over the silver in order to find them...!
Anyway, do yourself a favor and do experimentation, and test against known items, keep track
of where those things end up on your machine's dashboard...! Use the HECK outta your new machine -
get to know what it can do and can't..., keep guessing what is buried, and then digging your targets.
Practice, practice. Watch videos, and find out what TNet-ers do with their CTX3030 machines. Learn.
GL+HH

 

[Bigdob]

Mountnr
If you spot is not full of trash , use the bigger coils. I’ve found increased depth with the larger coils for sure.
Use that 6” in the nail infested spots.
It is possible someone has “cherry picked “ your spot sometime in the past, but I don’t think a place is ever “cleaned out”
I’ve got that program but I would use one that’s more open when you get used to the machine and all the sounds .
I also like “pitch hold” , it can find that object that is at the edge of detection and deep .
Just keep adding those hours up and the CTX will pay off for you, it’s a great machine
BT

 

[mountnr]

I think if I reply here, I can do a sort of general reply to each of you who replied to my question so far. I just want to thank each of you for your input, and make a few comments. I believe I forgot to mention the site I mentioned here is trashy. According to what I heard and the current Google Map image of the place, which is a few years old, it was a fairly decent place until the last renters trashed it pretty bad.
Good point about patience.
I had went over most of what I thought were the most likely places with the 11" coil before the house was demolished, but I was just brand new with the CTX 3030, and I didn't find much, only a few pennies.
I haven't used the GPS feature yet; I believe I'll try it out.
I did wonder about there not being any silver there, but I thought surely I would find a few nickels or some other coin. I'll keep trying. It sure felt good to find the 1 IH penny and a few wheat pennies 2 outings ago, as that was my best day so far, and the first time I used the 6" coil. (I also used the 17" coil that day, but found more with the 6", partly because of inexperience I suppose, and because the 6" is easy to pinpoint with)
Speaking of pinpointing - I made a mistake and got a "Garrett" pinpointer off Ebay for approx $40-$50 less than the real Garrett (from a seller who is no longer registered...). It said Garrett on the barrel and had a little manual with it, but was counterfeit. It worked fine at first, but not anymore. I contacted Garrett, and they said the serial number was not valid. They also mentioned that "a genuine Pro Pointer AT is not allowed to be listed for less than $127.45". I ordered a pinpointer from Big Boys Hobbies, and look forward to using it.

I do have another question for anyone that uses the CTX 3030 - - Do you sometimes see a 'good' ID on the screen, but it soon goes away and is not consistent, and perhaps 9-12"+ deep? If I understand correctly, the worthwhile signals are the steady repeatable signals, and if they jump around, it's probably trash?

I appreciate this forum. There are probably a number of people in this area that metal detect, but I don't know them, so it's helpful to find some info here and other places.

 

[Bigdob]

Mountnr
Just keep after it and learn the machine, it takes time .
I would recommend a test garden. Put coins you would expect to find at various depths also the trash you run into.
Then you can test programs , settings , coils. It’s not 100% like out in the field but you can really get a feel for the machine and settings and what they do.
BT

 

[Bigdob]

Forgot to mention.
On those iffy signals , you’ll figure it out in time, trust the machine.
Most are probably junk but if you have a constant good tone in there too, well ya gotta dig some trash to find out what the machine is saying , then you’ll know. Targets by trash can be difficult to figure out at first.
BT

 

[smokeythecat]

I agree with Cudamark. If it's not there, you won't find it. The older the site, the more likely you will not find silver. Before the Civil War especially, coinage of any kind was scarce in the US. There was a dire shortage of coinage.

 

[BLK HOLE]

Welcome aboard, as a lot of the gang has suggested be patient and learn what the machine is telling you. I have hunted sites where I went back multiple times pulling pennies and trash before the good stuff seemed to "Appear", so keep swinging and enjoy this awesome hobby and community

 

[cudamark]

I think if I reply here, I can do a sort of general reply to each of you who replied to my question so far. I just want to thank each of you for your input, and make a few comments. I believe I forgot to mention the site I mentioned here is trashy. According to what I heard and the current Google Map image of the place, which is a few years old, it was a fairly decent place until the last renters trashed it pretty bad.
Good point about patience.
I had went over most of what I thought were the most likely places with the 11" coil before the house was demolished, but I was just brand new with the CTX 3030, and I didn't find much, only a few pennies.
I haven't used the GPS feature yet; I believe I'll try it out.
I did wonder about there not being any silver there, but I thought surely I would find a few nickels or some other coin. I'll keep trying. It sure felt good to find the 1 IH penny and a few wheat pennies 2 outings ago, as that was my best day so far, and the first time I used the 6" coil. (I also used the 17" coil that day, but found more with the 6", partly because of inexperience I suppose, and because the 6" is easy to pinpoint with)
Speaking of pinpointing - I made a mistake and got a "Garrett" pinpointer off Ebay for approx $40-$50 less than the real Garrett (from a seller who is no longer registered...). It said Garrett on the barrel and had a little manual with it, but was counterfeit. It worked fine at first, but not anymore. I contacted Garrett, and they said the serial number was not valid. They also mentioned that "a genuine Pro Pointer AT is not allowed to be listed for less than $127.45". I ordered a pinpointer from Big Boys Hobbies, and look forward to using it.

I do have another question for anyone that uses the CTX 3030 - - Do you sometimes see a 'good' ID on the screen, but it soon goes away and is not consistent, and perhaps 9-12"+ deep? If I understand correctly, the worthwhile signals are the steady repeatable signals, and if they jump around, it's probably trash?

I appreciate this forum. There are probably a number of people in this area that metal detect, but I don't know them, so it's helpful to find some info here and other places.

You need to dig a few of those deep iffy targets to get a feel for what the detector is interpreting. The amount of trash nearby and the amount of mineralization will skew some of the readings/sounds. I like to flick it into all metal and max sensitivity to help analyze a signal before deciding. If still in doubt, I dig.

 

[pulltabfelix]

Hello,
I have a Minelab CTX3030 that I got used, and I'm a newbie. I have access to a homestead where the old house (which was recently demolished) was built in the 1860's or 1880's. I have found a handful of coins, but only pennies. No nickels, dimes, quarters, half dollars, etc. I believe the wheat pennies and IH penny were all around 3-4" deep. I really thought I'd find some old silver coins, but so far, none. I've mostly used the Old Coin Pattern as described by Andy Sabisch in the CTX 3030 handbook. I have used the 6", 11" & 17" coils. Most of what I found was with the 6" coil, because I can pinpoint the easiest with it. (I do have a pinpointer, but for whatever reason, it's not been behaving for me).

If anybody here has had a similar experience in finding only pennies where you 'know' there is other coins, I would really appreciate your advice. It's discouraging to go several times and not find what I fully expect is still there waiting.

NOTE: My main interest is old coins. I've been wondering if I should try a different metal detector, but I think the CTX 3030 is supposed to be an excellent detector, at least in experienced hands.

I will be new to the CTX3030 in 2-3 weeks. But let me give you advice on Minelab detectors. I got the Equinox 800 in March of 2018. Went from using the Garrett AT Pro for 3 years to the Nox. Trust me for the first year, I barely knew what I was doing and probably half the time was using some of the settings incorrectly. All it takes is one maladjusted setting to scuttle a hunt.

Just keep learning from the guys and gals on these forums about the CTX3030. I will be going through another learning curve soon on the CTX but really look forward to it.

 

[cudamark]

Once you start hefting that monster around, you'll miss using the Nox!

 

[pulltabfelix]

Once you start hefting that monster around, you'll miss using the Nox!

a lot of people say it is "balanced" and not so bad to swing. I guess that depends on the individual. I plan on not selling my 800 if possible. with the coiltek 10 x5" and CF shaft it is pretty light. What I am trying to improve on is 800's crappy depth indicator and not so good separating or ID'ing of targets. In metro Atlanta I need to avoid the layer of clad and modern junk and have not been able to do that with my 800. I don't trust the depth indicator on the 800 so I don't ever look at it.

 

[cudamark]

Agreed, it's well balanced, but, it's heavy compared to most of the latest detectors. I'm the other way around on target separation. I think the Equinox is much better with it's faster processor. In a target rich environment, I like to try a few different settings, playing recovery speed against swing speed with different size coils and a few different modes. It's like hunting a spot with several different detectors. There isn't as many options with the Etrac and CTX.

 

[pulltabfelix]

Agreed, it's well balanced, but, it's heavy compared to most of the latest detectors. I'm the other way around on target separation. I think the Equinox is much better with it's faster processor. In a target rich environment, I like to try a few different settings, playing recovery speed against swing speed with different size coils and a few different modes. It's like hunting a spot with several different detectors. There isn't as many options with the Etrac and CTX.

another forum member showed on the 800 how you can have a pop top on top of a dime and in multi - you get the pop top TID. switch to 4khz and you get the dime TID. pretty dramatic. You have have seen his video, cannot remember his name.

Not going to sell my 800 if I don't have to. It is great at finding earring studs with stones. No real stones yet, all fake but it give them a solid signal.

I guess we just have to find the detector that suites our hunting sites and actually produces. If after a long trial a year or more and not pleased with the results with the CTX3030 can always sell it. Many have said there is no perfect detector, just perfect detectors for different jobs. I agree the 800 is probably one of the most versatile detector that can satisfy lot of detecting needs. Had mine since Mar 2018. Took me way too long to learn because I was stupid and didn't just hunt in the standard modes and learn the tones and id's. I twiddled the different settings with not really knowing what I was doing, or using other people's settings for their sites which also detuned the detector.

Until you really know the 800, you can get a setting wrong and make it function like a $200 detector. If they had a marathon competition hunt of land and ocean beach hunting, trashy park and woods and field relic hunting I think the experienced detectorists with the 800 would easily win over other brands.

 

[Digger RJ]

Hello,
I have a Minelab CTX3030 that I got used, and I'm a newbie. I have access to a homestead where the old house (which was recently demolished) was built in the 1860's or 1880's. I have found a handful of coins, but only pennies. No nickels, dimes, quarters, half dollars, etc. I believe the wheat pennies and IH penny were all around 3-4" deep. I really thought I'd find some old silver coins, but so far, none. I've mostly used the Old Coin Pattern as described by Andy Sabisch in the CTX 3030 handbook. I have used the 6", 11" & 17" coils. Most of what I found was with the 6" coil, because I can pinpoint the easiest with it. (I do have a pinpointer, but for whatever reason, it's not been behaving for me).

If anybody here has had a similar experience in finding only pennies where you 'know' there is other coins, I would really appreciate your advice. It's discouraging to go several times and not find what I fully expect is still there waiting.

NOTE: My main interest is old coins. I've been wondering if I should try a different metal detector, but I think the CTX 3030 is supposed to be an excellent detector, at least in experienced hands.

Welcome to Tnet!!! Congrats!!!